Nick Curtis at Seele-Brennt tells me that issue two of LOST WORLDS is now available. Go to [
cas.seele-brennt.com].
Lost Worlds
The Journal of Clark Ashton Smith Studies
Contents of Issue no. 2:
"A Chinese Fable" by Clark Ashton Smith. Previously only available in the lettered edition of Night Shade Books' The Red World of Polaris, reprinted here is the poem as well as an image of the manuscript.
"Communicable Mysteries:The Last True Symbolist" by Fred Chappell. An exploration of the use and meaning of Smith's symbolism within his poetry.
"Brave World Old and New: The Atlantis Theme in the Poetry and Fiction of Clark Ashton Smith" by Donald Sidney-Fryer. Discussion regarding the ever-present theme of Atlantis (either directly in name or in the abstract) throughout the fictional career of Smith.
"Clark Ashton Smith Collections in the San Francisco Bay Area, Part 1: Letters to Samuel Loveman" by Mark Hall. A listing of the holdings in the San Francisco Bay Area of letters from Smith to Samuel Loveman. Includes many pertinent quotes from and remarks regarding the contents.
The Letters of Clark Ashton Smith reviewed by Brian Stableford.
I plan on sending issue three to Nick in six weeks, so we will be on a quarterly (more or less) schedule from now on, although I am considering going to a biannual schedule of about 100 pages per issue.
Starting with issue three, I am making a number of changes:
1. While continuing to strive for a high quality of scholarship for the main articles, I do plan to ease up on the faux-academia and try to make the publication a bit more fannish, more fun. I want to provide a forum for Smith fans to sound off that is a bit more permanent, and hopefully more thoughtful, than any electronic forum can provide. To this end I am inviting contributions to a reader's column--called "Letters from Mohaun Los," natch--to comment on the contents of the first two issues, along with any other brief points that the reader might wish to share. Brief, pithy, and insightful letters are what I'm looking for (500 words tops). If your letter is published, you get a free copy of that issue, of course.
2. We're increasing the number of pages to 50 and the font size to 11 (from 9.5 currently), which should improve readability considerably.
3. The CAS paintings on the front cover have been sent to the publisher as TIFF files, which have required that they not be larger than their current size without pixelization showing up. Starting with issue three, I'm sending Nick color slides and telling him to have Kinko's blow them up, so the Smith paintings will be _much_ larger. We are also considering issuing a color portfolio of the Smith paintings we use.
4. Besides letters, we also want to use more book reviews. We have excellent reviews on hand by Alan Gullette, Richard Hughey, and others, of books by CAS and Sterling and Sam Loveman.
5. We will be using more art inside, mainly as colophons for departments. Besides "Letters from Mohaun Los," there is "From the Crypts of Memory," a reprint department.
I am continuing to search for new material, both old and new. For instance, I have secured permission from William Whittingham Lyman's son to publish his father's memoir of Smith that is on deposit at the Bancroft Library. I am also having two fine articles translated from the French, and have pieces by Don Fryer, S. T. Joshi, Ron Hilger, John Hitz, and others on hand. And I am also plugging away at some pieces myself. But we need more, folks. There are kernals of a lot of good articles on this forum that just need a little effort to whip into shape. I do have a small budget for paying for articles, so here's an opportunity to earn a little well-deserved recognition, and maybe make a few pazoors while you're at it!
Best,
Scott
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 13 Mar 05 | 12:45AM by Scott Connors.